94 850: sell or fix?

[polskamafia mjl]

And stay far away from that 2001, they are evil. The transmission will blow up and you'll be looking at $4000 to fix that one.

What years had a transmission problem? Just 2001?

93-present

??

Yeah the 2001 models had terrible transmissions. Before and after are ok though. Personally I would fix her up but if you decide to get a new car I would stick to the 90's models. They are pre-Ford era cars and have proven to be reliable. Although...I would definitely love to have a 2006 s60 R.

[jblackburn]

If you're looking for a newer V70, you're probably best off with a 2003 or later model. 2001's had a stop-neutral feature that killed their transmissions, and many are being sold now with dead or dying trannies, and both 2001 & 2002 models had electrical problems out the wazoo. In 2003, the dreaded ETM that plagues 99-2002 models was replaced with another electronic throttle control that is far less problematic. If you are looking for an AWD model, that was also changed in 2003 to an electronic system that is also less problematic than the old-style mechanical system.

The 2000 V70 N/A models only (not GLT or T5) likewise had the 5-speed transmission, and for some reason or another, they are known to have problems too.

If it were up to me, I'd fix your 850 and keep it as a car for hauling stuff/kids/dogs around or whatever, and run it into the ground. Every family needs a work car...that's eventually what mine will be sentenced to You're not going to get much out of selling it, especially with a bad clutch if that really is your problem (hopefully you can just bleed it and forget about it!), so I'd say fix it, and then keep it around as a 3rd car once you are able to afford a newer car. The engine will easily last past 200K miles, so it's still got a lot of life in it.

[jh_on_the_cape]

Thank you very much for the help and the heads up on the newer cars.

[Ozark Lee]

I tired to respond early this morning but the site was down for changes.

fushionEdge makes a point.

It largely depends on how you are situated in terms of your ability to do the work yourself. Some are precluded by their mechanical abilities or the tools that they own and others might be precluded by restrictions by their homeowners associations / apartment restrictions. If you can't work on these cars for basic maintenance don't even buy them in the first place. Most of the dealers will rape you if you need service and these cars are service intensive, particularly when it comes to preventative service.

The items that jh_on_the_cape listed are not at all daunting to me but I am a decent shade tree mechanic. While I may irritate my neighbors by repairing cars in the driveway there is nothing they can do about it so I am free to fix my cars without any legal harassment.

If you can work on the cars yourself they are actually quite simple to work on in comparison to many of the newer cars, both Japanese and American. Parts are always an issue since you can't just run down to the AutoZone or Advance Auto Parts on the corner and expect to come back with an OEM equivalent part that will work.

I have three of them (850s) in the current fleet and I have dealt with all of the standard 850 problems and deal with the maintenance schedules (more or less - the snow is still melting and I hate changing engine oil in the snow). I remain relatively happy with all of them but short of getting the final torque done on the axles of my Platinum, since I don't have a 3/4" torque wrench, at a local indy shop I have done everything myself in my driveway.

What I do like about the cars is that they have a soul, they are actually fun to drive.

...Lee

[jh_on_the_cape]

Thanks. I do some work on the car but my time is limited. I did the cv axle and brakes on my passat. I just need to decide if I want to invest my time in an old car or a newer car.

[FCPEURO]

Basically, to sum up what everyone has said, if you can do the work yourself, then you should fix the car. If you can't, then it may be a better idea to just replace it. But, I would not touch that 2001 V70. You want to find something 2003 or newer at this point. Please keep us posted on what you decided.

[jh_on_the_cape]

Well it turns out to be a problem not with the clutch but with the transmission. The mechanic had seen this before and just jammed it into 3rd which somehow just 'freed something up' in there and now the car shifts smoothly in all gears and just needs a little extra push to get into 3rd. He said it could go on for months or years like this, and if I want to replace the transmission he would need to see how much a used one is, etc... but he thinks it would come in under $1000 all told.

So I am keeping the car. I will do the rear brakes this spring, and probably spring for 2 or 4 new (or used) tires. I found some on Columba rims which I have always wanted on the car... need to decide on that. I will have to survive with the broken creature comforts, as well.

Thanks for all the replies. We hope to keep this car for a few more years...